Hacker News Reader

Comment by rybosome | Hacker News Reader

At first I thought this was satire, so bizarre was the vitriol against big corp.

I work at one of the big "nefarious corporate" companies, and my life is incredibly happy; I'm proud of getting a job here and proud of the work I do. More importantly, I have time and money to travel, play music, live a healthier lifestyle and generally enjoy life outside of (and in addition to) work. Who gives a shit if "The Man" is getting rich off my work? I don't envy what he has. Being able to afford a Lotus wouldn't make me nearly as happy as spending time with my wife.

If you feel compelled to pursue a startup because it's your passion, that's wonderful...but doing so with the expectation of riches is unrealistic, statistically speaking. Plus, growth in wealth is proven not to linearly increase happiness.

EDIT: But who am I to tell you how you (or anyone) how to live their life? If that's your path, then by all means pursue it.

View on HN

I'm not even that concerned about getting rich. It's more about doing exactly what I want, when I want, and making a big impact (in terms of helping people) - without giving the billionaires any more power and money.

As Jesus said - It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God.

I'm an atheist, but there's a solid truth in that saying. If you can't make a living on your own, it's OK to join that corp, but otherwise, it's the modern version of dealing with the devil.

> It's more about doing exactly what I want, when I want, and making a big impact (in terms of helping people) - without giving the billionaires any more power and money.

> ...it's the modern version of dealing with the devil.

Hey, I get that bureaucracy sucks. It is an inevitable function of increased size. Have you had experience at any of the big companies you name, though? I don't mean to be challenging, but my view of them was more negative before I joined one; all of my meaningful work experience prior had been with very small employers, so I assumed big corporate life was like a Dilbert strip.

Finding what motivates you is a difficult and intensely personal process, so it shouldn't be approached as a universal truth. For me, I've found that I really enjoy programming for its own sake. Although I will always treasure the memories and experience I got working at a startup, I am also very satisfied working in a larger setting; I still get to do what I care about most in a work setting, which is to design software and write code.

Taking a job that gives me the opportunity to do what I love while also allowing time to pursue my passions outside of work is a perfectly reasonable way to live my life - hardly "dealing with the devil". I asked earlier, "who am I to tell you how to live your life?", but the inverse applies as well.

I think we're coming from different angles - you're talking about life satisfaction, I'm talking about life purpose.

The startup life might be harder, in the short run, but I think it bestows a grander life purpose because at the minimum you are not helping the already rich get richer.

Sorry but I'm not sure I understand your reasoning. Judging by your writing, you sound very young and inexperienced.

The definition of employment is trading some kind of value (usually knowledge, skill and labor) for money. When you work for a company, you are doing that trade with your employer, who in turn resells your services to their customers, while taking a cut of the profits. In effect, your employer is a middleman providing a degree of stability, security and pretty much instant ability to sell your services, in return for making a profit off your work. By being a startup owner/founder, you are doing essentially the same thing, except that now your boss is your customer. You still answer to somebody. As long as you want to sell something to the world, you will always have a 'boss'.

I don't see what's so wrong with working for another person. So what if it makes them richer, is that a bad thing? It also makes you richer, so equating it with "dealing with the devil" is just immature.

aah ... I think you should holding off throwing around labels like maturity, that's a bad way of making arguments.

Of course you're using a third party for branding/funding, however, as I mentioned in my original comment, corporations exist to reduce the transaction costs of collaborating and distributing - costs which are greatly reduced with widespread internet access.

This means you can have a 'virtual corporation', wherein you have much more freedom to decide your course of action.

In the end the customers is your boss - true, but you have much more say in what the product is (and this is good or bad, depending how skilled you are and your risk tolerance).

As Jesus said - It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God

It does not suggest poor people have it easier.After all,Jesus was technically a rich person doing an internship on earth.

So, the people you hire, they will be dealing with the devil?

I'm a big believer in utility-style pay by sip business. The employer-employee relationship is inherently prone to abuse and to mispricing, usually in the employer's favor. I've never hired anyone and never intend to.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com